


A Different Kind of Zeno Reveal

by Fai_Gensou



Category: Akatsuki no Yona | Yona of the Dawn
Genre: Language Barrier, Time Travel, Zeno reveal, immortal character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-03
Updated: 2018-04-07
Packaged: 2019-02-27 16:24:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,003
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13252047
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fai_Gensou/pseuds/Fai_Gensou
Summary: Zeno knew this particular clearing was familiar, but frankly, the clearings had blended together centuries ago, so he wasn’t overly bothered by it.At least, until he returned with firewood to find his past in a stare-down with his present.Of all the ways he pictured revealing himself to the present generation, this way never even figured.“So that’s why this clearing is familiar to Zeno…”





	1. Reveal

Zeno frowned internally at the clearing where they were setting up camp. It wasn’t much past midday, but no one was in any particular hurry, and the area was isolated enough for everyone to feel comfortable taking a break.

Something about this clearing bothered him. He swore he’d been here before. “Zeno will get firewood!” He exclaimed, darting off before anyone could notice his puzzlement.

“Zeno knows he’s been in that clearing before.” He muttered to himself once he was far enough away to be sure he wouldn’t be overheard. “But which century? Not that Zeno was keeping track…and clearings start looking alike after the first ten or twenty…”  
Shrugging and content to set the matter aside, he continued his self-assigned chore, humming a tune he’d learned at some point. He was reasonably sure it wasn’t current however.

Starting back, he frowned. “Why does it seem like the other dragons have split in two?” He hurried back, dropping half of his load to get back to the others quicker.

“…but Zeno went that way.” The lad said once he was in earshot.

“What about Zeno?” He asked as he re-entered the clearing.

Catching sight of the five extra people who had most definitely not been there when he left, he hardly registered his armful of wood clattering around him as his arms went limp and everything stopped. The moment while his mind processed the five lasted forever. He wasn’t even sure he was breathing, as a memory he had completely forgotten filled his mind.

“Ou…sama…”

* * *

Yona frowned at the five strange men who had noisily entered the clearing. They weren’t speaking Koukan, but the more she listened, the more familiar the words were, and she could follow the conversation. “…Told you we should have gone left at the fork in the road.” The man with hair and eyes like Shin-ah’s complained.

“And I’m maintaining the map’s been upside down this whole time!” The one colored like Jaeha retorted.

“How about I paralyze your ass?! You can’t navigate your way out of a one-door room!”

“Never mind that we have company.” The white-colored one pointed out.

“Maybe they know which is the right way?” Zeno proposed, craning his neck to look at the map.

She was sure it was Zeno.

But it wasn’t the present Zeno. The clothes were completely different from what Zeno had been wearing when he left to get firewood, and he almost felt…younger? He still felt like the sun, but if her Zeno was a summertime sun, this Zeno was a wintertime one.

“…actually, I think brought the wrong map to start with.” The fifth man sheepishly admitted.

Taking in the oddly familiar features, she barely kept herself from exclaiming ‘it’s you!’ His hair was an exact match in color to her own, and while the eyes were very close in color as well, his seemed to glow from within, like the faintest glow of almost dead charcoal.

“I’m not imagining that the blond kid looks like Zeno, right?” Hak whispered quietly to the others.

The five impossibly familiar men had devolved into some sort of fight/argument. “He’s got the same amulet.” Jaeha conceded, Shin-ah agreeing with a nod.

“You’re right…but Zeno went that way.” Yun pointed out.

“What about Zeno?” Her Zeno asked as he entered the clearing with firewood.

As he caught sight of the five men, his skin turned ashen as the wood clattered to the ground around him. He stopped breathing, as his eyes went impossibly wide. The look on his face was painfully familiar.

_/’Ou-sama…just what is Ouryuu’s power?’/_

Yona shook herself out of the illusion as Zeno whispered, “Ou…sama…”

* * *

Hiryuu was quietly relieved when his cute little dragons started arguing with each other over directions and who was right instead of attacking the people already in the clearing. It was easier to pretend he had brought a wrong map than flat out admitting, “Hey, I wanted to check out a time hole and see the future dragons.”

This particular clearing had been one of his preferred areas when he visited Earth before descending, and for reasons he didn’t fully understand, such a concentration of his power from Before meant that it was possible for multiples incarnations of himself to exist in one space in time, if only in the clearing.

The nature spirit who had been born in this clearing had let him know when his next life was in the area with that generation’s dragons, and the excuse of ‘dragon bonding time’ had worked beautifully.

He did not, however, anticipate that the language would be completely different. He was picking up a couple words, but the only word he knew for certain was ‘Zeno’.

_Is the Zeno they’re talking about…?_ A familiar voice, speaking the unfamiliar language of the other six drew his dragons from their argument.

It was Zeno.

What he had feared about just what his yellow brother had done to the boy was completely true, and likely far worse than he imagined. “Ou…sama…” The intonation of the words was rough, like he hadn’t spoken the language in ages, but still understandable.

The Zeno serving his future self (the crimson-haired girl who looked at him and his dragons with confused familiarity), drew in a ragged breath. Ignoring the questions of the future dragons, he slowly walked over, stopping a couple feet before him. “So that’s why this clearing is familiar to Zeno…” He whispered in the language of his past and his own present (this was going to get confusing fast).

“How long?” Hiryuu asked quietly, his Zeno staring wide-eyed at his future self while Abi elbowed Shuten into silence.

“Don’t know. Too much of a pain to keep count.” The future Zeno admitted. “Your time is that of myth, which was two thousand years ago, so…”

“TWO THOUSAND YEARS!?” Guen and Shuten exclaimed together, Abi furrowing his brow in thought as his Zeno gasped.

“What…just what kind…?” His Zeno couldn’t bring himself to complete his question.

The future dragons and their companions (a tall dark haired young man and a pretty youth of indeterminate gender) just watched in confusion, while his reincarnation pressed her hands to her mouth.

“What kind of power?” Orange-Zeno (because at heart, it was still his Zeno) prompted.

Young-Zeno nodded. “Oh…what was that pass called back then?” Orange-Zeno pondered. “Not Chang…that was three dynasties later…”

Guen, Abi, and Shuten just watched in shock as Orange-Zeno, giving up on remembering the name of some pass, drew a line through his left shoulder down to his waist. “Has that happened?”

Young-Zeno paled, and Shuten entered the conversation, “Hold it, that’s not the limit?!”

“If there is a limit, Z-I haven’t found it yet. And I’ve had a very long time to find it.” Orange-Zeno answered quietly. “I’m the oddball without any power…but nothing can destroy this body, and once enough damage has been taken, the scales generate and it turns to steel…”

“When you say ‘nothing’…” Guen trailed off.

“Hunger, heat, cold, being torn to pieces, illness…old age…I haven’t changed at all. I don’t even think my hair’s grown…”

A gasp drew attention to his reincarnation. Eyes watering, she tackled Orange-Zeno into a hug, nearly sending both of them to the ground. “I’m sorry…I’m sorry…” She whispered, the accent rough, but still understandable.

* * *

The more she listened to the conversation in a language she knew yet didn’t remember learning, the more horrified Yona grew. Zeno had been alive for at least two thousand years?

Suddenly his penchant for nicknames, saying his own name every other sentence, and calling the other dragons by their color made terrible sense. How many people and dragons he had watched die? What was the point in remembering anyone’s name if they’d be gone in fifty years? How could he remember his own name if he didn’t say it to himself?

She couldn’t contain herself when Zeno admitted that he hasn’t changed at all. Running to him, her momentum nearly sent them to the ground. Full on sobbing now, she was aware that she was saying ‘I’m sorry’, but not the language she was using, as she clung to him the way he had to her (?) when he had begged to know what his power was one last time.

“…miss…” Zeno had to take a moment to think of the modern Koukan to use in place of the ancient version.

He had known her whole life who she had been, ever since he snuck into her nursery a month after the red star appeared in the sky. Her actions as the fire ignited and she found the others only affirmed it. But this action just sealed what he had always known.

He hugged her back just as hard, and hummed the tune from earlier as she calmed down enough for him to speak to her. “Yona…it’s alright.” He whispered as she drew back to wipe her eyes.

“But…you’ve been alone for so long…and I didn’t answer you but it wasn’t ‘me’ and I know them and how is this possible and—“ Zeno cut her babble off with a finger to her lips.

“You can’t blame yourself for something you didn’t do in a past life that you weren’t even aware of until now. Me being alone wasn’t your fault; I don’t know how this is happening, but…if you know them, it just confirms what I’ve known since you were born.” He told her, as she stared at Hiryuu-ou and his dragons.

“…I thought Kija was being over eager, saying I was Hiryuu-ou reborn. How could I, a silly, weak, ignorant princess, have been him? But it’s hard to deny it when I’m staring right at it.” She admitted quietly.

Now, the others had been watching, baffled, on the side, unable to follow the conversation. “It makes absolutely no sense, but I think that’s Hiryuu-ou and his Dragon Warriors.” Yun found himself conceding. Yona and the crimson-haired man could pass as twins, despite the difference in height.

“This is Hiryuu-ou and the first generation Dragon Warriors?!” Kija exclaimed, sparkling with hearts in his eyes.

“Guess so. But with the language barrier, it’s not like you can annoy your ancestor to death with your questions White Snake.” Hak pointed out.

“What I want to say doesn’t require words…” Jaeha said darkly, fingering his throwing knives.

Shin-ah eyed the man who was supposedly the first Seiryuu with a tilted head. He couldn’t imagine just walking around with his eyes uncovered. _I guess whatever led to the Seiryuu being masked happened after his time…_

“Settle down you rare beasts. You’re missing the point.” Yun cut in.

Hak, Kija, Jaeha, and Shin-ah looked at him with questioning looks. “Whatever Ouryuu’s power is, it means that Zeno’s always been Ouryuu, ever since the beginning. He’s lived through countless generations of dragons. But he’s not going to get away with not acting his own age.” Yun explained, sending Orange-Zeno a dirty look at the end.

“Lad, if Zeno acted his own age, it would mean doing nothing, since he’d be bones and dust.” Orange-Zeno called over, remembering to use modern Koukan.

“What’s with the whole saying your name bit?” Shuten asked.

“SHUTEN!” Yona scolded a heartbeat ahead of Hiryuu. Realizing she had used his name, a hand flew to her mouth. “Shuten…Abi…Guen…Zeno…” She whispered, looking to each one as she whispered their name.

“Hold it, you reincarnate as a girl?!” Guen exclaimed. “Why?!”

“I’m more concerned that our children will inherit our powers. Why is my descendant wearing a mask?” Abi asked.

Orange-Zeno’s eyes turned dark. “You’re better off not knowing.”

“Jaeha, just go ahead and fight Shuten already. You’re being kind of scary.” Yona commented, finding it easy to speak the Koukan she was used to if she focused on the others.

Jaeha, several knives in each hand, looked as fearsome as he had when he jumped into Yan Kum-ji’s men about to kill her. “Meh, I’m always down for a fight. As long as I get an explanation behind his anger.” Shuten said with a grin, bringing his spear into a ready position before leaping at Jaeha.

Guen eyed his young descendant warily, beyond creeped out. He looked like he was a drawing of the love interest in the romance tales he absolutely did not read in his spare time. “Kija’s village, your village, is the only one with a positive view of the dragon’s power. Shin-ah’s village forgot about the dragons and see the Eyes as a curse, while Jaeha joked about being chained…I don’t think he’s lying about it.” The crimson-haired girl that was his king’s reincarnation explained, her accent growing fainter.

Guen just looked between her and Hiryuu. “You should have just descended as a girl to start with. You’re cute enough that you wouldn’t’ve needed us.” He declared, making the girl (Yona he thought Zeno called her) blush as bright as her hair.

The dark haired man with the pole arm said something to his descendent that he evidently didn’t like, as he turned and yelled at him. Rolling his eyes, the man unwrapped the blade of his polearm. Sending Guen a look, he settled into a ready position.

Understanding the look, Guen enlarged his hand and ran towards the man. He had to be strong if he was with the future dragons.

Abi sat down a few feet from Shin-ah, and the two were watching their respective animal companions interact. Ao didn’t quite know what to make of the bird, and the bird did not like being taste-tested.

Frowning, Abi gestured to the mask on his descendant’s face. Shin-ah shook his head, shrinking back slightly.

Young-Zeno hung back, still processing his fate. “I’m sorry.” His future self whispered. “I can’t say that I’d have chosen differently, when offered the dragon’s blood, if I knew then what I know now.”

“Will we be alone the whole time?” Zeno couldn’t recall a time where he felt genuinely lonely. There was always people with him, and he couldn’t imagine staying the same while they withered and died.

“I had a wife.” Zeno gave his future self a shocked look. “Without her…I’d have forgotten my name and everyone else’s long ago. I probably wouldn’t have been in any fit state to be around people. After she died, and I realized Hiryuu-ou would be reborn, I was able to interact with people, even if only as a traveler. Not that there weren’t times when the loneliness of waiting got too heavy…” He admitted, fingering the amulet he now wore dangling off his head scarf instead of around his neck.

“I’m more impressed you’ve held onto it all those years.” Young-Zeno commented, pointing at the amulet.

“It won’t stay away from me. Whenever it’s been lost, or more often, stolen, it always comes back to me—to us.”

Hiryuu watched Guen fight with the dark-haired man. Whatever issues had kept Guen’s descendant out of the fight faded, and he leapt into the fray. Unfazed, the dark-haired man intruded into Shuten’s fight with his descendant. “He’s really strong.” He commented to his reincarnation.

“When he was thirteen he beat a General more than twice his age. People started calling him ‘Raiju’, since his attacks are like lightning.” She told him. “I wouldn’t have made very far without him, with the Dragon Warriors with us, hopefully I won’t end up losing him too.”

“They’re yours, bound by blood. As long as you will it, nothing will stop them.” He assured her.

“Zeno said something similar, how all that matters is if I have the intent. But realizing—remembering—relearning what his power is…I don’t want to ask it of him.” She hugged herself. “As much as Hak might want me wrapped up in silk, it’s Zeno who needs it more. But I’m too weak to try making him stay back.”

“It’s not something he’d accept, knowing the full scope of his power. Didn’t work very well even when he didn’t know.” He said.

The fight had ended up as a free-for-all, everyone attacking and teaming up as they pleased. Shin-ah entered the fight as well, striking with the flat of his sword. Abi was a little jealous of how his descendant was able to use a sword so well. He had only starting learning after the death of his elder brother made him firstborn son, and he hadn’t learned much before the dragon gods descended.

“…you brought them here on purpose, didn’t you?” Yona asked Hiryuu with a side look.

It was so strange, standing at his side. Even before learning he had been real, she had loved the story and even at her most selfish and spoiled, she admired his strength to stick with his beliefs. Hiryuu-ou was so much more than she could ever be that she couldn’t believe Kija’s assertion of her being his reincarnation.

Seeing him in the flesh and looking into his eyes…she couldn’t deny it anymore.

Hiryuu scratched his cheek sheepishly. “I wanted to see what the future dragons would be like. I knew I’d reincarnate at least once, so I could see how Kouka had grown. I had thought that my brothers, save for my yellow one, would pick new people in the generation of my reincarnation, not make it an inherited legacy. I had really, really hoped…that the fate facing Zeno wasn’t the one I feared. In all likelihood, it has probably been far worse than I could ever imagine.”

* * *

Yun was getting a little fed up. He didn’t really want to interrupt Yona talking with Hiryuu-ou (!), or the Zeno’s, but everyone else was tearing up the clearing, and some of them would have to sleep there.

He also didn’t like being ignored, and it was getting late enough that he felt twitchy about not started dinner. “SETTLE DOWN YOU RARE BEASTS!!!!” He yelled.

He forced himself to stay stern in the face of the comical sight. While Shuten and Guen couldn’t understand the words, the tone required no translation.

Most telling was how the other four people in the fight immediately halted in the positions they were in, looking like bizarre statues.

“Oi, Yellow, how long do you remember these guys sticking around? We don’t have enough supplies to feed them.” Yun demanded/asked of Orange-Zeno, arms crossed.

“PU-KYU!!!” Ao interrupted him, drawing attention to herself.

Oddly, Hiryuu seemed to understand her. “Well according to her, the time hole that brought us here will close soon, so we need to leave the clearing. Not sure how much we’ll remember, since Zeno’s in both times.”

“Z-I didn’t remember what happened here until I saw everything on this end, but I think we just wandered back to the road without noticing time had passed.” Orange-Zeno informed him.

“Why wouldn’t we remember?” Shuten asked, confused.

“We encountered a future Zeno, so the encounter isn’t one we can remember, since it could mess everything up.” Hiryuu replied.

Walking over to Orange-Zeno, Hiryuu swept him up into a hug. “I’m sorry I never answered you. One day, I’ll make sure you come with me at the end of whichever life, even if I have to beat up my yellow brother myself.” He promised as he whispered in Zeno’s ear.

Eyes watering, Zeno just nodded, throat tight.

* * *

“Ou-sama, why are you hugging on Ouryuu for no reason?” Abi asked flatly.

For some reason, while blindly wandering through a clearing, Hiryuu had latched onto Zeno.

It would have worked better if their heights were switched. “But he’s just so huggable!” Hiryuu exclaimed. “Or are you jealous I’m not hugging you?”

“No way.” Came the universal denial from the other three.

“Didn’t you say you brought the wrong map, Ou-sama?” Zeno asked, twisting to catch sight of the map.

Pausing, Guen, Abi, and Shuten crowded around the map. “…he’s right…” Shuten agreed unhappily.

“Shouldn’t we have realized this ten li ago?!” Guen exclaimed.

“Please don’t try and claim wandering in the woods was fun, Ou-sama.” Abi deadpanned as they found the road. “We accomplished nothing.”

“The journey matters as much as the goal!” Hiryuu exclaimed.

Watching his cute little dragons, he just smiled to himself. _May I fill your memories with happy times, to warm the dark lonely times to come…Zeno…_

* * *

Rubbing his eyes, Zeno turned back to the others, to encounter Yun right up in his face, hands on his hips. “Answers. NOW.” He demanded with narrowed eyes.

Zeno just gulped.


	2. After

“Yun…” Yona said, wringing her hands.

“Miss, its fine. Zeno knew he’d have to answer questions when the time came; he just never expected it to happen this way.” Zeno assured her.

“So WHEN exactly were you planning on telling us that you’re evidently one of the first Dragon Warriors?” Yun demanded with narrowed eyes. “And just what kind of power would let you live this long?”

Zeno sighed. “Jaeha, can I borrow one of your short swords?”

Jaeha couldn’t completely hid his shock at being addressed by name as he handed one over.

Yona latched onto Zeno’s sleeve. “You know it’s easier to show them.” He told her, as everyone else looked on in confusion.

Her eyes were watery as she bit her lip. “…at least take your arm out of your sleeve. Let’s not make more work for Yun.”

“True enough; the lad’s already edgy.” He agreed, pulling his left arm out of his sleeve, letting his robes hang down.

Before the others (read: Yun) could ask just what he was doing, Zeno swung the borrowed short sword, cutting through the middle of his forearm. He held the bleeding stump over the grass away from his clothes as he dropped the short sword, to various exclamations of shock from the others. Yona just watched with her hands pressed over her mouth.

While she had gained a vague remembrance of his power during the impossible encounter, it was different seeing it.

Swearing, Yun grabbed his medical supplies. “Just what the hell—“ He was cut off by Shin-ah’s hand over his mouth as the severed hand started moving.

It picked up the sword, before being pulled back to where it belonged. It reattached to the stump, and golden scales grew out from where the arm had been severed.

“What. The. Fuck.” Hak said, summarizing the thoughts of the onlookers.

Save for Yona, who was telling herself that throwing up would be a really, really bad idea.

Especially in front of Zeno.

“I’m the oddball dragon, without any powers. But when I’m injured…” He switched the sword to the other hand. Tapping the scales with it, there was a clanging noise. “Once there’s been enough damage…this body regenerates into steel, and gains strength equal to Hakuryuu’s arm or Ryokuryuu’s leg.”

“I KNEW I broke your jaw that time!” Hak declared gleefully. “But you sounded normal not even a minute later so I didn’t say anything.”

“I’m wondering why there’s nothing in my village’s library about this. I know documents have been lost or destroyed, but there was not even a hint of Ouryuu’s power, beyond what is said in the birth myth.” Kija mused.

“Hiryuu-ou didn’t let me fight with the others.” Zeno distracted himself by petting Ao. “I was either guarding the castle as the last line of defense, or getting Abi—Seiryuu—off the battlefield once the paralysis kicked in. I didn’t really figure out the full extant until years later, after the others had left the castle and had families. Well,” He corrected himself with a bitter smile that surprised everyone. “I’m still not sure the full extent of it. I could wind up surviving the end of the world. I haven’t left Kouka either, so I don’t know how being out of Kouka would affect it.”

“Why would leaving Kouka affect your power?” Jaeha asked.

“It would affect all the dragons. The farther you get from Hiryuu Castle, the dragon’s blessing weakens, and once you’re far enough away, you can get sick like regular people, and you get tired out faster. It’s why the traditional borders of Kouka are where they are; that’s the greatest extent the dragon’s blessing reaches. I’m guessing I’d heal slower, but…” Zeno explained with a shrug.

“No wonder the dragon villages never immigrated. Or if they did, it was only for a short time before they noticed the effect on the current dragon.” Kija mused.

“How old are you anyway? And don’t cheat and say your physical age; we know that’s not true.” Yun said drily.

Zeno looked up at the sky. “Not sure…too much of a pain to count.”

_‘Too painful to count.’_

“Two thousand, four hundred and seventy three.” Yona said suddenly.

Blinking, she frowned. “Where am I getting that number from?”

Zeno did a quick tally of the dynasties in his head. True, he hadn’t counted the years, but dynasty changes were big enough to catch his attention, and there was always someone who’d comment on how long the previous dynasty had lasted whenever it happened. “Eh, sounds like its right, but Zeno would swear it’s been a lot longer than that.”

A somewhat awkward silence fell over them.

* * *

“So Hime-sama is Hiryuu-ou’s reincarnation, as my village thought?” Kija finally asked over dinner.

Shin-ah had spotted a male boar, so they were having boar stew.

“I’m still having a little trouble believing it.” Yona admitted. “Even after seeing him, and knowing his dragon’s names without being told…I don’t have any powers…”

“Neither did he. But he was kind and charismatic, and had a way of drawing people to him, which is a power all its own.” Zeno assured her. “Zeno and his brothers were all from very different backgrounds, and had some trouble getting along with each other without him present, especially at the beginning.”

“So you just wandered around Kouka alone all those years?” Hak asked.

Zeno’s eyes sparked with mischief. “Zeno did get married once.”

Jaeha and Yun choked on their mouthful of stew. “M-married?!” Kija stuttered.

“What?” Zeno blinked, faking innocence. “When you live long enough, it’s natural to get married.”

“I think it’s the ‘once’ bit that’s as surprising.” Yona commented, setting aside the question of why she wasn’t surprised at Zeno’s revelation.

“Zeno; married…” Jaeha repeated to himself, not quite believing it.

The knowledge lifted his opinion of Zeno out of ‘brat’ into ‘surprisingly grown-up’. Even more so since he didn’t think he could commit himself to anything as serious as marriage.

“Wait, if you knew Hime-sama was Hiryuu-ou reborn, then why did it take so long for you to join us?!” Kija exclaimed.

“This’ll sound cruel, but I wanted to see what she’d do with the dragons’ power. I had already been watching, so I kept watching through all of it. After Awa, it seemed like the right time.” Zeno answered, focusing on his bowl of stew so he didn’t have to look at anyone.

“You wanted to see if I was the kind of person you would want to serve, and lend your power to.” She said quietly. “If I hadn’t convinced you in Awa, you would have waited longer, and not join when you did.”

Zeno nodded.

“No wonder you said the other dragons didn’t matter; we’re like mayflies to you.” Jaeha commented, Shin-ah nodding in agreement.

Silence descended over the group again, less awkward compared to the one before, but still filled with a hint of tension.

* * *

Yona latched onto Zeno as everyone settled down for the night. With Zeno attached to Shin-ah’s fur, the three of them resembled some kind of multiple limbed fur ball monster. Hak couldn’t bring himself to protest, although he didn’t look happy about it.

Somehow, everyone was able to squeeze into the big tent Yun had just finished, if somewhat squashed and contorted. “At the very least, we won’t be cold.” Yun commented, curled against one of the tent poles next to Shin-ah.

Hak had glued himself to Yona’s other side, and glared Jaeha into stretching out at everyone’s feet. Kija found himself laying at the heads of Zeno, Shin-ah and Yona.

As everyone quieted and fell asleep, Kija found himself staring at Zeno’s mess of blond hair.

His impossible dream, of meeting the first generation, had come true. He had even gotten to cross fists with his illustrious ancestor! He had been so caught up in seeing his ancestor that he hardly paid much attention to the other dragons, even Hiryuu-ou-sama, once the realization of who these strange men were processed.

Hiryuu-ou-sama had looked remarkably like Hime-sama, abet with the more angled features of a man. The first Seiryuu and Ryokuryuu appeared to be the opposites of Shin-ah and Jaeha in terms of appearance, and his own ancestor seemed to be rougher in appearance than he had personally imagined.

Thinking of the first dragons led his thoughts to Zeno. Seeing the present Zeno, standing next to his past self…he had done a mental double take. About the only thing that had been different between the Zenos, aside from the clothes, had been the eyes, now that Kija thought about it.

“Hakuryuu, stop thinking so loud and go to sleep.” Zeno’s voice jolted him out of his thoughts.

Kija blushed. “I just…it was an impossible dream, meeting the first generation. But it came true.”

“But that’s not the only thing.” Somehow, Zeno managed to turn his head to look up at Kija.

Kija averted his eyes from Zeno’s gaze. “I can’t conceive of how many months have passed, since that time, what happened today. It was only a short time ago, but impossibly long ago at the same time for you.”

Zeno eyed him, like he didn’t believe Kija. “I’m not offended by you trying to get me to train my power.” He finally said. “You had good and valid intentions.”

Kija’s face just grew even hotter, he rolled over to get away from Zeno’s knowing gaze.

* * *

Everyone felt at loose ends the next morning. Yona hadn’t slept well the night before. Even with Zeno’s sun a comforting presence next to her, even in her dreams, her dreams were filled with Zeno getting hurt in horrible ways. The exact details were rubbed out with the sleep in her eyes, but the intense guilt and despair remained.

She was left with the sense that what she had dreamed of had really happened.

That Zeno had actually experienced the horrible things she had seen. The guilt and despair were edged with grim determination, to bear witness to Zeno’s suffering.

As atonement.

She practically fell back asleep in her breakfast, and Hak carried her back into the tent, Shin-ah covering her with his fur and leaving Ao with her. Ao chittered at the red dragon girl, and Yona murmured something no one caught.

Zeno left while Yun was muttering over their supplies. He had seen how the lad had plotted over using the white dragon’s scale in battle, and he didn’t completely trust the lad not to get caught up in possibilities regarding his power.

Scaling a tree, it didn’t take long for Shin-ah to join him. Sitting on a branch below his own, Shin-ah looked up and asked, “…is that why?”

“Why what?” Zeno asked with a blink.

“You don’t use any names aside from your own.” The sunlight dappling through the leaves glinted off the amulet hanging from Zeno’s head scarf.

“My wife had been very sick,” Zeno said abruptly. “And isolated herself from other people, so she wouldn’t spread it. Since she was alone, she’d say her name to herself, so she wouldn’t forget it. It was a very dark place, where I was when she found me. When she asked me my name, I had to think hard, because no one had used it in so long.”

Zeno looked up at the sky with unseeing eyes, blinking furiously against the budding tears. “I would say the names of the others so I wouldn’t forget, but it never occurred to me to do that with my own name. Once she was gone too, it was one more name to the list. Sure, I’d go to towns and cities and interact with people, so I could distract myself a little from the dark loneliness, but…” He bit his lip, hard enough for blood to well up. “I didn’t want to add more names.”

Shin-ah averted his eyes, even though Zeno couldn’t see where he was looking.

Learning this took some of the sting out of how Zeno never used the name Yona had given him.

“You know, Shin-ah…” Looking back at Zeno, Shin-ah saw a fond, nostalgic look on his face. “If you want me to call you by the name the mi—Yona gave you, you just have to ask. That’s all any of you have to do.”

“…I’d really like it, if you used my name.” Shin-ah told him.

“Alright!” Zeno perked up with a mix of real and faked cheerfulness, swinging so he was hanging off his branch by his legs. “Any questions about Abi? Your ancestor.” He clarified, sensing Shin-ah’s confusion over the name.

“…he didn’t hide his eyes.”

Zeno sighed. “After Hiryuu-ou died, people after the powers of the dragons kidnapped him. He was the easiest one to grab, since Guen and Shuten—Hakuryuu and Ryokuryuu—could easily kill anyone who would come after them and my power wasn’t as obvious. They rescued him, but he never spoke of what happened while he was captured. He started wearing a blindfold and spending all of his time in Hiryuu-ou’s tomb. That’s when it was decided to leave the castle and scatter. I stayed behind, since the occupants were panicked over all the dragons leaving. I never saw them after they left, so I don’t know if masking the Seiryuu started from that or not.”

“…” Shin-ah said nothing as he processed this information.

Vaulting down to the ground (making sure to land on his feet, even if it technically injured him more than belly-flopping, but he didn’t feel like explaining that), Zeno left Shin-ah to his thoughts.

* * *

Jaeha frowned up at his book as he realized he had been staring at the same page for several minutes without actually reading it. Snapping it shut, he rested it on his belly and stared up at the clouds.

Fighting his ancestor was a mix of joy and frustration. Joy, because he got to gauge himself against another full strength Ryokuryuu. Frustration, because the language barrier meant he couldn’t interrogate the man about why in seven hells he would drink the dragon’s blood.

Feeling Zeno approach, he said, “Guess it’s my turn then? Since you got Kija last night and just finished with Shin-ah.”

“Mostly Zeno is avoiding the lad and his questions.” Zeno flopped down somewhere near Jaeha’s head.

“Why did he do it?” Jaeha asked.

There was no need to clarify who ‘he’ was, or what ‘it’ was either. “Zeno and the others never discussed it, why we chose to drink the dragon’s blood. But it gave Zeno a great shock, when he could still feel the dragons, after feeling the others die. He thought he had imagined it, until he visited Hakuryuu Village and saw a boy with Hakuryuu’s arm.

But the guardians of Hakuryuu Village were very zealous in their duties, even then.”

That…really wasn’t what Jaeha wanted to hear. “So at the crucial moment of decision, all of you didn’t know that the power would be inheritable.”

“Yup.” Zeno, sensing Jaeha’s consternation, continued. “Zeno does know that Shuten, your ancestor, had been a slave who had escaped and became a mercenary. Never could see how he wound up leading a whole band of mercenaries and ex-slaves, but Shuten couldn’t figure out why Zeno was picked as a dragon warrior when he had just been a brat who could hear the gods a little so…”

“If he had been a slave, why bind himself to another master?” He couldn’t figure it out.

“Something about Hiryuu-ou must have impressed him, because they had met before, but Zeno doesn’t know what, since Shuten was always calling him an idiot. The miss is a lot like he was, stubborn and pure-hearted and with a way of drawing people to him.” Zeno explained.

Jaeha hummed in response. “So was she cute? Your wife.” He asked.

“…the cutest, but Zeno is biased.” Zeno stood, brushing the dust off his clothes. “Zeno thinks he’s ready to divert the lad if he gets ideas,” He said as he left Jaeha in the clearing.

“I wonder how long ago he was married, if asking about his wife gets that response.” Jaeha muttered, watching Zeno leave out of the corner of his eye. “Not to mention what kind of woman she had been.”

Sighing, he turned his attention back up to the clouds.

* * *

Hak sat outside the tent, watching Yun go over their supplies. “So what do you think about what happened yesterday?” He asked Yun.

“Completely bizarre, but everything about the dragons is bizarre.” He answered. “But with Zeno’s and Yona’s reactions…scratch that, Yona’s reaction, you can’t deny it.”

“I wish we knew what they had been saying yesterday, but the fight was fun.” Hak said with a dark smirk.

“I wonder why Yona was able to speak the old Koukan? She’s never shown any sign of something like that before.” Yun pondered.

“Zeno thinks it has something to do with being so close to her past self.” He said as he walked over to Yun and Hak. “If you have any questions about Zeno’s power, now’s the time to ask. He won’t answer any more unless he has to, after today.”

“If starving doesn’t kill you, why do you still get hungry?” Yun asked. _No wonder he said repaying for food is a ‘hobby’, if he doesn’t technically need to eat…_

“Zeno’s power doesn’t trigger unless the body suffers damage. He may not starve to death, or die from no sleep or lose fingers to frostbite, but it’s not comfortable when that happens. He’s noticed that his power works a little better if he eats regularly, probably because it has more resources to draw on.” He explained. “This body can suffer through every kind of damage that can be done to the human body; it can just recover.”

“Why did you freak out after I punched you and broke your jaw, but were able to cut your arm off without flinching?” Hak asked.

“Zeno hadn’t expected mister to be that strong!” He said with a grin. “But for some reason, the bigger the injury, the less it hurts.”

Zeno was not about to admit that his mind disconnected from his body when he was heavily injured and his power activated. _My mind probably can’t handle the sensations, and hides from it until it’s over. Even thinking back, I can’t connect to the sensations I should have felt. Then again, knowing exactly what it feels like to have your flesh and bones knit back together isn’t something I want to remember._

“The miss still asleep?” Zeno asked.

“Yeah…she didn’t really sleep well last night. Not sure why…” Hak answered, peaking into the tent.

Yona was clinging to a pile of blankets, Ao curled up, watching her sleep. Her brow was furrowed, and there were tears on her face.

“Zeno will sit with her.” Zeno seated himself near Yona, Ao jumping into his lap.

* * *

_“I did my best to make happy memories for him, but I still wasn’t able to find the words to tell him.” Hiryuu-ou said, holding her to him as they laid on top of a crimson dragon._

_“I want to keep him safe, but I can’t force him not to fight. I know how much it had hurt him, to be denied the chance to fulfill his role back then.” She whispered. “What had he been thinking? Bestowing that kind of power?”_

_“I still don’t know. But our yellow brother was the dragon gifted with foresight, for all the attention the all-seeing eyes of our blue brother get. He must have seen something, but I haven’t been able to reach him, throughout these centuries.”_

_“He’s inside Zeno, isn’t he?” She asked._

_“I think so. Zeno hasn’t been able to hear the gods since he drank the dragon’s blood. An Elder Dragon God would have no need to listen to the multitude of gods, for he is as high above them as they are to humans. But why he hasn’t been able to hear yellow brother inside of himself, or the rest of our brothers, is something I don’t understand.”_

_“He deserves to rest, to be with his brothers and his sun. My generation…is merely placeholders…”_

* * *

Yona slowly floated up from her dreams, feeling hands playing with her hair, the way her mother had in her dim memories of her. The tangle of guilt and despair she had woken up with earlier had lessened. She could still feel the arms of Hiryuu-ou—of her past self—around her as she opened her eyes to look up at Zeno. “You shouldn’t be taking up the burdens of the past.” He whispered, wiping away the tears from her face.

“But you were left alone for so long, with no explanation, and no guarantee of if the wait would be worth it.” She whispered back, rolling to bury her face in his lap, breathing in something that reminded her of sun-warmed wood.

“It would be a lie, saying that the waiting and the loneliness didn’t become too much at times. But I can’t say if I’d chose differently, if I knew then what I know now.” He told her, huddling over her as if to protect her from the world.

“He should have told you more, before you agreed to anything.” Her fingers found the amulet he wore on his headscarf, and there was a flash of memory, _to help comfort the lonely days to come, so she/he could watch over him after death and before rebirth_ , “He’s pretty sure that he went inside of you, our yellow brother.”

There was a weird overlap in her words, like it was as much Hiryuu speaking to Zeno as she was, but she ignored it when Zeno’s eyes widened in shock. “Wha—“

“You can’t hear the gods anymore because an Elder Dragon God is as far above regular gods as regular gods are above humans, and needn’t concern himself with them. But you should still be able to hear the other Dragon Gods, and I—he—doesn’t know why.” She continued, tracing the dragon on the amulet.

“You know I’m serving because I want to, not because of who you were.” He said suddenly.

“But who I was is why you’re here. If it wasn’t for who I had been…” Yona swallowed against the sudden lump in her throat. “I’m nothing special, just a spoiled, ignorant princess. I’m selfish enough to seek out any power to survive. Were it not for him, I…” She wasn’t sure where her train of thought was leading, but the realization of actually being Hiryuu-ou’s reincarnation had sunk in, and the weight of his legacy had begun pressing down on her.

“He didn’t descend to found Kouka, you know.” Zeno told her. “He just wanted to experience life as a human; that’s why he didn’t keep any of his dragon powers. The kindness and charisma that drew people to him was all his own. He was idealistic, naïve, and more than a little clueless. When his wife tried to kiss him for the first time, they collided heads because he thought she wanted to check his temperature.”

“Wait, then Hak—he was--?!” She sat up, stunned.

“That is something you’ll need to confirm with mister.” He said with mischief in his eyes. “But my point is that he was still a person like you or anyone else. So just be yourself. Who you had been is why Zeno and his nephews are here to start with, but we all stay because of who you are now. So just keep being you.” He had the same fond, nostalgic smile he had had when he joined, watching the other three as Kija wept from all the dragons finally gathering again.

Something eased inside as she returned his smile. The smile froze when her thoughts returned to Hak and the almost kiss. “If Hak had tried to—does that mean--?!”

Pulling open the tent flap, she stuck her head out and yelled, “HAK HAD YOU BEEN TRYING TO KISS ME THAT TIME?!?!?!”

Hak, who had been mid-sip from a water canteen, choked on his sip and dropped the canteen. “Oh, what have you been up to with our dear Yona-chan?” Jaeha said with a smirk as he entered the camp in time to hear Yona’s yell.

“Hime-sama how could you let this uncouth person kiss you?!” Kija screeched.

Growling, Hak grabbed his weapon and lunged at Kija and Jaeha. Returning himself, Shin-ah just watched the chaos with a tilted head, as Yun scolded the three fighters who had started tearing up the clearing, Yona demanding Hak to answer her question as she crawled out of the tent.

Zeno bit his hand as he tried to smother his laughter. _Should Zeno tell them this is much the same scene as what happened after Ou-sama successfully kissed his queen the first time?_ “IF YOU’RE GONNA FIGHT THEN LEAVE THE CLEARING WE STILL HAVE TO SLEEP HERE YOU RARE BEASTS!!!!” Yun screeched himself as Zeno left the tent himself.

Standing next to Shin-ah, Zeno decided. _Nah, that would spoil the fun!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It seems to me that Zeno goes into some sort of trance or mental disconnect when his power gets going. Whether it’s a side effect of his power or his mind protecting itself is open to question. Depends on whether Ouryuu would have taken it into account when bestowing the power...and how callous you want to see the Dragon Gods.


	3. Lingering Questions

“So why don’t you fight, Zeno?” Kija asked, after another bandit encounter saw Zeno sticking close to Yona and Yun, and not actually fighting. “I mean…” He trailed off, not sure how to continue.

And how to politely point out that Zeno’s power wasn’t a secret anymore.

“Hakuryuu, Zeno doesn’t have any power of his own. So it’s either running and hiding, getting hurt enough for the scales to appear, or ending things quickly. And ending things quickly means hitting the vitals.” He explained, raiding one of the bags the bandits had dropped.

“Can’t you just wound them without killing?” Hak asked.

“…the lesson of not leaving anyone alive was very thorough. Dealing with one bandit gang for twenty years was more than enough.” He replied quietly. “Never mind the ones after Zeno’s power for themselves.”

“I know there were imposters who would turn up at my village, pretending to be Hiryuu-ou.” Kija remarked with a furrowed brow.

“It’s said if one consumes the flesh of a dragon one can gain their power. And a Dragon Warrior would work just as well, by that logic. It’s why Abi had been kidnapped; he was the easiest target.” Zeno explained, not finding anything of interest or use in the bag.

“…does it work?” Hak finally asked, after they left the encounter site behind and set up camp.

“No. Anyone or anything that ate Zeno…still died…” He was crouched down, hugging his knees.

Tentatively, Yona knelt down next to him, and wrapped her arms around him. He latched onto her hard, while Ao offered up nuts to the sun dragon.

“Is there anything cheerful you can talk about?” Jaeha found himself asking.

“One year for Zeno’s birthday, Guen gave him a cow.”

“Was it the Year of the Ox?” Yun asked, not following the logic.

“Nope. He figured the milk would help Zeno grow up strong. Abi gave fruit, and Shuten brought high-end alcohol.” Zeno remembered with a wistful smile.

Yona lightly ran a finger over his amulet. “And Hiryuu gave you this.”

Zeno nodded.

There was no more meaningful conversation until after dinner. “Wait, you said leaving Kouka would weaken the dragon’s power. But I didn’t notice anything when we were in the Sen Province.” Kija exclaimed, the question bouncing in his mind finally surfacing.

“The southern part of Sen has been going back and forth between Kouka and Kai for centuries, and was part of Kouka when everything happened. We didn’t go too deep into Sen either; if we had gone to the northern part of Sen it might have been different. There was no one with a major illness, and Zeno healed at the same rate as always when he tested…” Zeno shrugged.

“So in the future we should be careful around the borders.” Yun noted. “Didn’t the Dragon Gods say anything useful back then? Like about a limit?”

“Nope. Guen and Shuten’s power was obvious, but Abi didn’t discover the paralysis ability of the Eyes until he glared at Shuten over…something. They didn’t get along very well at first.” Zeno reflected. “The look on both of their faces, when they both fell over paralyzed…The first hint Zeno had was when Guen punched him through two stone walls.”

“WHY’D HE DO THAT?!?!?!”

“You startled him awake, right?” Yona piped up.

Zeno nodded.

Eventually everyone drifted into the tents, leaving Yona and Zeno by the fire, with a reminder from Yun to douse the fire. “The miss shouldn’t try very hard to remember things from Ou-sama.” He commented quietly. “The miss is the miss and Ou-sama was Ou-sama.”

Yona flushed, not sure how he could tell but not questioning it. “…I’ve been trying to remember sword arts from him.” She finally admitted. “So Shin-ah isn’t pushed into using his power again…and so I can keep you and Yun and everyone safe.”

Zeno tilted his head to look at her. “Miss—“

“I know I can’t keep you from protecting me anymore, and using your power, if it came to that.” She cut him off. “But that doesn’t mean I’m okay with you getting hurt, or you disregarding your physical safety so easily. The better I can protect myself…the less you have to get hurt.”

Zeno was quiet.

“During the fight, with Sen and Fire…” She continued. “When Yun stood in front of me, to protect me with his body…I had been completely horrified. I remember thinking, ‘I don’t want anyone to be my human shield if I can stop it…especially Yun and Zeno.’ It didn’t make sense at the time, but now…”

“Zeno will do his best, to not get hurt, and look after his safety better.” He promised her. “But if the others aren’t nearly, or are hurt too badly to protect you…I will be your shield. Yours and Yun’s and everyone's.” Withdrawing from her arms, he bowed low. “So please…let me do my duty to you, the way I couldn’t back then…”

Teary-eyed, Yona nodded. “Yes.”

* * *

Entering the larger tent after dousing the fire and seeing Yona safely enter her tent with Yun, Zeno discovered Jaeha trying to kill Kija from blushing, as he continued describing how to pleasure a woman. “—have her crouching over your face, and licking her—“

“Ryokuryuu, it works so much better the other way, with her on the bottom, so you don’t have to worry about either of your strength giving out. It’s a mood killer if one of you gives out from muscle strain.”

Hak and Shin-ah gave up on the pretense of sleep to join Jaeha and Kija at staring at Zeno as he claimed his spot for the night. “What?” Zeno asked, blinking ‘innocently.’

“…how do you know that?” Hak finally asked.

“Zeno did get married. What did you think he did with his wife? Cuddle?”

“Yes.” Was the united response from the four of them.

“She had consumption, so most of the time, it was cuddling, more because Zeno worried too much.” He admitted. “But that doesn’t mean he never had sex with his wife.”

“Wait, have you been celibate the whole time? Since she died, however long ago that was?” Jaeha asked, a little stunned.

“Hmm…when was the last time Zeno got hard…?” He wondered out loud.

“If you have to think about it, I’m gonna have to say Droopy Eyes has the right idea and you have been celibate.” Hak grumbled, mostly because he didn’t want to admit Jaeha might be right.

“So if you were only with her, and it was just a few times, what’s your source?” Jaeha asked, curious.

“The first Ryokuryuu and Seiryuu; Shuten and Abi.” Zeno replied. “Hiryuu-ou, while he knew the basics, wasn’t sure exactly how to seduce his wife. So when everyone went with them to a hot spring, Zeno had a front row seat to what Shuten called, ‘How to fuck your wife properly’.”

The others started. Zeno using such a vulgar word with completely out of keeping with his character, yet he said it so casually. “Why those two?” Kija asked.

“Abi was a younger son of a nobleman, so he had learned about how to satisfy women as part of his education. Shuten had more ‘hands-on’ knowledge. Zeno’s face was red for nearly two days afterwards… Guen didn’t have a lot of encounters, but he did say that the dragon’s arm made what Ryokuryuu was describing a lot easier.” Zeno said with a sly look at the end, when Kija turned as red as Yona’s hair.

Somehow, Jaeha, faced with this unknown variable in his quest to enlighten Kija and Hak into possibly doing something with Yona, couldn’t bring himself to continue, opting instead to hunker down.

An embarrassed silence fell over everyone but Zeno, who, while cheerfully innocent-looking on the outside, was cackling on the inside. _Shuten was right; it IS hilarious to startle people with unexpected knowledge about sex._

As the others drifted off to sleep, his thoughts turned to Kaya. _I wish I had let her talk me into making love with her more times than I did._ Zeno hid his face in his pillow as he followed the others into sleep, the pillow turning wet with ancient regrets.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More things for the others to ask came up in my head, so enjoy a part 3.


End file.
